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I could imagine the challenges this would present to the AI designers would press them to the leading edge and what they learn would spill over to better highway AI. However, it's hard to envision if it would be fun to watch or not.

Really? No...really?? No sound. No drivers. Next, they will run at night with the lights out. Following that, just simulate the whole thing as a video game. It will save bunches and allow fans and drivers alike to just stay home.

This should facilitate rapid development of AI algorithms that can also be used in road cars. Great idea. I am glad to see this, but I doubt real race drivers, in exciting but low tech ICE cars, are going away. We still have our vintage trains with steam engines, and the public loves them. Horse racing as well.

We still have our vintage trains with steam engines, and the public loves them.

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For what it's worth, most are switching from coal to diesel. The steam train at Disney World is diesel powered, as are all but one of the Mt Washington Cog Railway trains (the are building a 6th now). Instead of burning 1000 lbs of coal on a run, they use 18 gal of B20:

Thinking more long term on the implications of the Formula E announcement of "driverless" racing: historically what has attracted interest to any "race" (on foot, on skis, on a horse, chariot, in a car, in a plane, etc.) is the human element. We primarily celebrate the winning runner, rider, skier, driver, pilot, because we identify with a fellow human who has excelled against other humans.
Now imagine a future, a decade from now, when almost all new cars being sold include full autonomous driving capability, and a young generation that doesn't have a driver's license or own a car, they just use cars like they use planes or their local Hyperloop: as a way to get from A to B. How much interest are they going to have about cars running around a track without drivers? Likely not much. Nor are they likely to have any interest in watching race cars being driven by humans, who will likely be slower than autonomous race cars.
As a member of a generation that grew up in car-crazy Southern California in the 60's and 70's, I have little interest in watching autonomous race cars compete. Auto racing as we know it today may be on the way out in the not too distant future. And I don't see "driverless racing" catching on as a spectator sport. Sure there are engineers who would like to build a race car that can compete with human drivers and beat them but that doesn't mean that driverless car racing can succeed as a commercial business enterprise in the same way that F1 and NASCAR have.
And just to be clear, I am looking forward to being able to buy a Tesla in 5 years that will have full autonomous driving capability and be able to take me almost wherever I want to go more safely then I could if I was driving the car.

Thinking more long term on the implications of the Formula E announcement of "driverless" racing: historically what has attracted interest to any "race" (on foot, on skis, on a horse, chariot, in a car, in a plane, etc.) is the human element. We primarily celebrate the winning runner, rider, skier, driver, pilot, because we identify with a fellow human who has excelled against other humans.
Now imagine a future, a decade from now, when almost all new cars being sold include full autonomous driving capability, and a young generation that doesn't have a driver's license or own a car, they just use cars like they use planes or their local Hyperloop: as a way to get from A to B. How much interest are they going to have about cars running around a track without drivers? Likely not much. Nor are they likely to have any interest in watching race cars being driven by humans, who will likely be slower than autonomous race cars.
As a member of a generation that grew up in car-crazy Southern California in the 60's and 70's, I have little interest in watching autonomous race cars compete. Auto racing as we know it today may be on the way out in the not too distant future. And I don't see "driverless racing" catching on as a spectator sport. Sure there are engineers who would like to build a race car that can compete with human drivers and beat them but that doesn't mean that driverless car racing can succeed as a commercial business enterprise in the same way that F1 and NASCAR have.
And just to be clear, I am looking forward to being able to buy a Tesla in 5 years that will have full autonomous driving capability and be able to take me almost wherever I want to go more safely then I could if I was driving the car.

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I refer the Right Honorable gentleman to the answer I gave some moments ago.

Ecarfan - I agree. I am follow the rider/driver more than the car/motorcycle.

But as I get more sarcastic and understand the world less...I see a racing series without drivers being believable. Similar to Battle Bots or Robot Fighting. Totally believable - especially in a place like Monza where the fans blindly cheer for the prancing horse.

Thinking more long term on the implications of the Formula E announcement of "driverless" racing: historically what has attracted interest to any "race" (on foot, on skis, on a horse, chariot, in a car, in a plane, etc.) is the human element. We primarily celebrate the winning runner, rider, skier, driver, pilot, because we identify with a fellow human who has excelled against other humans.
Now imagine a future, a decade from now, when almost all new cars being sold include full autonomous driving capability, and a young generation that doesn't have a driver's license or own a car, they just use cars like they use planes or their local Hyperloop: as a way to get from A to B. How much interest are they going to have about cars running around a track without drivers? Likely not much. Nor are they likely to have any interest in watching race cars being driven by humans, who will likely be slower than autonomous race cars.
As a member of a generation that grew up in car-crazy Southern California in the 60's and 70's, I have little interest in watching autonomous race cars compete. Auto racing as we know it today may be on the way out in the not too distant future. And I don't see "driverless racing" catching on as a spectator sport. Sure there are engineers who would like to build a race car that can compete with human drivers and beat them but that doesn't mean that driverless car racing can succeed as a commercial business enterprise in the same way that F1 and NASCAR have.
And just to be clear, I am looking forward to being able to buy a Tesla in 5 years that will have full autonomous driving capability and be able to take me almost wherever I want to go more safely then I could if I was driving the car.

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